Peonies

Peonies were my wedding flower. I still have my bouquet, it's dried in perfect condition (with the exception of one fallen peony, which resides on my dresser). I'm blessed enough to have a mother-in-law who owns a flower shop in Austin, so sometimes when we go over to visit, my husband surprises me with flowers from her shop. Peonies are my favorite to receive, not only because they come in the most romantic shades of pink, but also because they smell so delicious, and I like how they start out as tight blooms and grow into huge ruffly flowers on

ce they open all the way. And they dry so pretty as well.

So the last time we were planning a trip to Austin (we went to pick up an awesome wardrobe she scored on craigslist for $25! wait til you see it all painted and set up...), she had gotten in a supply of peonies and called Heath to see if he would be interested in getting me some. He's so sweet...of course he said he would be :) Then I have to laugh because he tries so act all sneaky about it and hides them behind his back all around the store while I browse all the interesting retail items she sells. Sometimes he manages to get them out to the vehicle without me noticing them in his hand (but I usually catch him in the act anyway).

Here is my wedding bouquet. I have it sitting on the piano along with the unity candle and my favorite photo of me in my wedding dress taken by the insanely talented Dustin Meyer.

Little Bit of Christmas

Just thought I'd share some of my Christmas with you! This year I decided to go with a plaid theme. At first I was going to do a Candy Cane theme, then I started seeing in my head all this warm, fuzzy, flannel plaid and I couldn't resist.

I had to make most of my decor this year because I had nothing that was plaid. So I made a visit to a local thrift store and racked up on some plaid shirts, a long plaid dress with black velvet buttons (the sales lady told me I would look great in that dress, to which I said, "then I'm not going to tell you what I'm going to do with this dress." haha), and some sweaters. I made a garland for the tree, used strips to decorate my presents, stuffed scraps in clear ornaments, made pillow covers.... Needless to say I have used the heck outta those thrift store purchases and still have a ton of fabric left over.

I also found a couple of plaid-like scarves. One I used as a table runner and the other I put on my rocking horse as I figured he would like to be dressed up for winter as well, in fact he liked it very much so he got a special place under our mantel.

I also added a woodsy touch with a cut up tree branch my hubby so sacrificially put his life in danger for (okay maybe not his life, but perhaps just an arm or leg). I do love that man... These serve as a center piece with a candle on each. Don't worry, I checked them closely for termites :)

Here are a few photos of our cozy, festive little home!

Our little travel tree with our ornaments from the different places we've been and my window with old photos and some added snow flakes.

Here are just a few of my favorite ornaments. One from our Disney trip that wouldn't fit on our little travel tree because it is too heavy. A hand painted Santa ornament from a very sweet and talented lady, our "just engaged ornament" from 2008, and our lovebirds that my mom got us one year.

Also here are some quick iPhone photos because I was just too lazy to go back and take pics with my good camera.

My tree topper kinda cracks me up. It looks like my tree has a pony tail :)

Hopefully I'll remember to get a better picture of our mantel because this is just horrible...

Merry Christmas from The House with the Yellow Door!

The House with the Yellow Door

This is how I direct people to our house. I've gotten used to saying "We're the house with the yellow door." I love my yellow door. Sometimes I question the shade of yellow. It may change at some point, but I feel that having a yellow door makes us stand out from everyone else. Yellow is a happy color, don't you think? I was inspired to paint our door a color a bit different from the usual red while we were in England. We saw so many different colored doors; purple, blue, pink, green... They made me so happy I decided I would paint my door a fun color too!

Thus the yellow door and the name of my blog.

I am starting this blog to document all the fun projects my husband and I will undertake in our somewhat new home. Owning your own home is wonderful (well except for those leaky faucets and those doors that stick and won't close in the summer. It's kinda nice to have a landlord who fixes those things for you!) and we are counting our blessings with each project! You may find photos and stories about our funny little peekapoo, Milo. He's a scruffy little thing, but I have always had a soft spot for scruffy dogs. You also may find crafty things, ideas that I want to try, and other bloggers that I look to for inspiration... I know quite a few inspiring people!

So check back often and hopefully you will see something that will inspire you :)

I leave you with a quick photo of Milo himself. I must tell you, this is before his baby teeth fell out. Now he needs to have puppy orthodontics. Poor guy :)